Welcome back, everyone! We hope you are in need of some new soldering tools because we have top-quality options in store for you today. A new soldering station, butane soldering iron, soldering tips and a couple of workbench items that will make your life so much simpler! We don't have a product video this week, as there are so many new products to cover. So without further ado, let's just dive in!
The WLC100 from Weller is a versatile 5 watt to 40 watt soldering station that is perfect for hobbyists, DIYers and students. The WLC100 operates at 120V and features a five-position dial to provide variable power control to the soldering station. The included 40 watt "pencil" soldering iron is lightweight with a cushioned foam grip and an interchangeable flat ST3 tip. The soldering iron can even be detached for your on-the-go soldering needs!
The Weller Portasol Kit is a fantastic box filled with a pocket-sized, butane-powered soldering iron as well as multiple attachments for it. Each soldering iron has been equipped with a push-button Piezo ignition that adjusts from 25-Watt to 75-Watt for ease and convenience. This iron is versatile too, functioning as a soldering iron, hot air gun, butane torch or hot knife --- you'll be hard pressed to find something you can't do! They're ready to use quickly --- fewer than 40 seconds after ignition --- and can run for up to 60 minutes on a single tank of butane.
The Solder-Mate™ Solder Dispenser provides you with an easy way to, well...dispense solder! This handy tool provides a continuous supply of solder (until the roll runs out, that is), freeing up hand space and minimizing downtime. Each solder dispenser can hold up to a one-pound solder spool, which you will need to supply yourself. If you need some solder (like that pictured above) we have quarter-pound spools of lead-free solder in 0.032" (0.8mm) and 0.020" (0.5mm) diameters.
Do you need to remove the oxidation and surface contamination from your soldering iron tip? The Solder Tip Polishing Bar allows you to do just that! This bar provides a great way to bring your older or neglected soldering tips back from the dead.
And speaking of soldering iron tips...
We have four new soldering iron tips for our two new irons today! The standard ST1 tip for the WLC100...
The flat ST3 tip for the WLC100...
The "conical" ST6 tip for the WLC100...
And finally the double flat tip for the P2KC butane iron.
Alright folks, that's it for this week. As this post's name suggests, this is only the first week of new tool products, so be sure to check out even more new tools next Friday! As always, we can't wait to see what you make with them! Shoot us a tweet @sparkfun, or let us know on Instagram or Facebook. We’d love to see what projects you’ve made!
We'll see you next Friday!
Can we bring that butane soldering iron on a plane, in check-in?
I love my cordless butane solder iron. Make sure you have ventilation and don't bring it on a plane, but they are a very handy tool to have and butane is about $5 at home depot.
I have an earlier model of the Portasol (red with the strike wheel in the cap). It actually came in handy while backpacking. I would use the hot knife to cut and melt the ends of nylon rope, and the blow-torch tip to help others light their shaker stoves. I tried using the blowtorch to help light the fire, but the hot spot was too small and concentrated to do anything more than incinerate just the part of the tinder that I pointed it at. YMMV though.